Seomun Market

Infobox Korean name


caption=Main gate of Seomun market.
hangul=서문시장
hanja=linktext|西|門|市|場
rr=Seomun Sijang
mr=Smun Sijang

Seomun Market is the largest Korean traditional market in Daegu, South Korea, containing more than 4,000 shops. Seomun Market is particularly known as a source for textiles and sewing services, a key ingredient of Daegu's fashion industry.

The name "Seomun" means "west gate," and refers to the location of the market just outside the old west gate of Daegu Castle, which was demolished in 1907. It is also one of the country's oldest markets, dating to a 5-day market held in the area in the late Joseon Dynasty. In the final years of Joseon, Seomun market was one of the country's three largest markets. The market was constituted in its present form in 1920.

Although portions of the market are in the open air or small buildings, most of the shops are in large buildings holding hundreds or thousands of individual shops. The largest of these buildings was Building 2, which was destroyed by fire in late December 2005. Plans for the reconstruction of Building 2, which held the majority of the market's fabric shops, are still being made. There are four other building complexes, and two other large shopping areas.

ee also

*List of Korea-related topics
*Economy of South Korea

External links

* [http://www.seomunsijang.daegu.kr/ Seomun Sijang Information Center, in Korean]